Now 27, Plumptre is a cerebral young woman as well as a talented footballer. She has taken several unusual moves in her career, most notably switching international allegiance from England – where she was born and who she represented at youth level – to Nigeria, the nation of her paternal grandfather.
So when her father Tim, who is also her agent, told her of an approach by Al-Ittihad, she decided to give them a chance despite initial misgivings.
“I spoke to some teams in the UK, US and Europe, then Dad said there was a team in Saudi Arabia who are interested in you,” she told BBC Sport.
“I was shocked. My initial reaction was ‘no’, but I wanted to give them a chance.”
Plumptre was one of the first international stars to move to the SWPL, which was launched in 2022 as a fully professional competition.
There are 24 teams in the league pyramid, divided into three leagues of eight, and clubs are allowed to sign up to six foreign players.
The men’s competition, the Saudi Pro League, has gained a reputation for splashing the cash to bring in major global names like Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar and Karim Benzema.
Plumptre’s representatives declined to comment on her salary and contract at Al-Ittihad, and the player herself said the project was the main draw, rather than money.
According to the New York Times in 2023, the league is funded by the state’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and carries higher prize money than the WSL while overseas players’ salaries range from $60,000-$120,000 (£44,000-£89,000) per year tax-free. In a 2022 survey, the BBC found the average WSL salary was £47,000, although some top players can earn far in excess of this figure.
“I had an hour-long call with the coach and two people in the management staff, and I said to Dad, ‘I have a really good feeling about this’,” said Plumptre.
“We barely even spoke about football, but about ourselves and what we were passionate about.
“I’m someone who goes off feeling and intuition. But I wanted to go out and visit – I wanted to see what it was really like. I visited for two days and really liked it, and when I left there I thought ‘this is where I want to be’.”
